Just kidding, Travis and I have always been really good at compromising. This, however, was our first married compromise.

I told Travis that I wasn’t going to make a corned beef this year and his face fell. “What, why?! No corned beast this year for St. Patrick’s day?” Yes, we call it a corned beast, not corned beef. It’s just our thing, okay? Lol.

I’ve been making Travis a corned beef every St. Patrick’s day since we moved in together. He loves it. Except, this last year we’ve made a conscious effort to eat mainly vegetarian meals. I haven’t cooked meat in this house in at least 6 months! I really didn’t want to break our healthy eating streak but I felt like I should make it for Travis because he’s been so good about not eating meat.

If I was going to make corned beef, I had to put a healthy spin on it, of course.

I thought over the ways that I could make a traditional corned beef. With…water, beer, broth. No, nope, nah. Hmmm, what else could I use?

Bingo —> Kombucha! My new favorite obsession.

I recently found a 6-pack of GT’s Ginger Kombucha at Costco so I stocked up and I’ve been drinking that for the last few weeks and loving it!

What is Kombucha?

If you haven’t tried kombucha yet, what are you waiting for? It tastes like a bubbly sweet flavored tea that’s actually good for you aka the elixir of life! In reality, it’s a fermented probiotic (really good for your gut) drink that contains tummy-loving cultures.

I love all the flavors, especially mango, trilogy, guava, and passion berry. Yes, I said passion berry. I still don’t know what a passion berry is but I know I love it! How delicious does a passion berry martini sound? I’ll tell you, they’re freaking fantastic! I’ll take two, please. =)

Slow Cooker Kombucha Corned Beef

Many of the corned beef recipes out there call for cooking the meat in a pool of your favorite beer. Beer is a fermented drink, kombucha is a fermented drink….sounds like a good option to me!

Using kombucha as the cooking liquid is exactly the healthy twist I was looking for! It turned out perfectly, I love the delicate flavor that the ginger kombucha gave the corned beef. The ginger flavor gives the meat a tangy flavor that’s seriously addicting.

What Type of Corned Beef Should You Buy?

Most corned beef that you see at the store is pink once cooked. Why is it pink you ask? Because it’s loaded with sodium nitrate.

Sodium nitrate is a salt that’s used for curing meat, hot dogs, bacon and sausages. I believe it to be a carcinogen so I avoid it at all costs.

I made a Garrett Valley corned beef because they are free of added antibiotics, nitrates, nitrites, preservatives, and artificial ingredients. Plus, they actually care about their animals and the way they are humanly raised.

Because I used a natural brisket that has no added sodium nitrates, my slow cooker kombucha corned beef didn’t turn out pink, it’s brown…just like it should be!

Slow Cooker Kombucha Corned Beef Prep

This slow cooker kombucha corned beef is as easy as it gets. There is barely any prep work! Slice two onions, add the corned beef, pour in the ginger kombucha and set the slow cooker for eight hours on low.

That’s it! Get ready for delicious sandwiches when you get home from work on St. Patrick’s Day!